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Letters: Annexation question needs to be answered in responsible way

The truth about the annexation north of South Heart is still unknown. The residents of South Heart received mailings Monday, outlining the “projected” revenue that will come into South Heart, as well as ways they can spend it. That’s all fun to dream about, but is it true? I hope the South Heart City Council makes an actual informed decision and is not just blinded by dollar signs.

According to the annexation rules given to the city, a public hearing should be held and advertised for two weeks in advance. The notice of petition of annexation was published, but there was no mention about a public hearing. No one knew if they would be allowed to speak or ask questions at what was supposed to be a regular city meeting regarding the proposed annexation until a few days before, when it was announced that it would be open to questions.

What was not announced was that there would be no one there qualified to answer questions. A simple question about how much water they would use daily was not answered. As a business owner who was forced to close my doors three different times last year, due to there not being water in the city, I am very concerned about the answer to that question.

This isn’t about who is getting real estate commission and who stands to make millions off the sale of the land. This is about something coming in and changing our small community FOREVER.

I just hope the city is responsible enough to ask and demand answers to those questions. This could be a great thing for South Heart, but how are we to know? Why rush? Why not hold a proper town hall meeting and let the community find out about this. Why not hold a properly advertised public hearing and let the questions be answered? The decisions the city council makes today will affect us all, long after they are gone.